


mirror

by Whydidtheydothis



Category: Victoria (TV)
Genre: Character Death Fix, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-01-10
Updated: 2018-01-10
Packaged: 2019-03-03 02:22:32
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 681
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13331478
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Whydidtheydothis/pseuds/Whydidtheydothis
Summary: Alfred believes Edward is dead and has already began to mourn when he receives news that Edward has survived and is coming to see him





	mirror

**Author's Note:**

  * For [twocandles](https://archiveofourown.org/users/twocandles/gifts).



> tiny fix it ficlet
> 
> the mirror scene with Alfred putting on his arm band because he can only mourn his love in secret absolutely killed me so I fixed it because no one, NO ONE, wants to see Lord Alfred's devastated mourning face again

“What is this?”  
  
Edward plucked at the black material around Alfred’s arm   
  
Alfred went red, he had forgotten it was there   
  
“I was wearing it because….and I couldn’t…..not in public..” he falters   
  
“because you thought that man had actually killed me?”  
  
Alfred nodded quickly, he felt ridiculous that Edward had seen it. Those few hours when he thought Drummond had been shot & killed had been the worst of his life. He had seriously wondered if it was possible that he could even go on. Being told by the duchess that he could not mourn publicly was like an additional blow to his heart that had already shattered into so many pieces he was not sure he would ever be able to find them all to put it back together. He’d decided that although he could not wear mourning publicly, he would wear it where no one could see. He had gone to his room to compose himself & had taken out a black cravat, wrapping it around his arm under his shirt deciding then & there he would mourn Edward forever.  
  
And then had come the incredible news, Drummond hadn’t been shot, the man had fired but the gun had been loaded with blanks.   
  
Alfred had almost collapsed with relief when the news was brought to the company at dinner where he had pushed his food listlessly around his plate under the worried eyes of Miss Coke. A separate note had then been handed to him with just 1 sentence scribbled on it in Drummond’s writing “1am in your chambers”  
  
He had hurried to his rooms as soon as he could & paced the room waiting. At 1am there was a light knock on the casement window and he raised it so Edward could climb in. For long minutes they could do nothing but cling together, Alfred’s tears dampening Drummond’s shirt front  
  
“I thought you were dead” he wept   
  
“I know” said Edward gently “I am so sorry my love” Edward had been furious when he’d finally left the Houses of Parliament to find the rumours of his premature death were already circulating and had even reached the palace. His first thought was what Alfred would think & his heart ached to think how he would have suffered in those few short hours  
  
Kissing him he began to unbutton his shirt & pulled it off; it was then that he had discovered the arm band. He turned Alfred to face the mirror   
  
“Take it off” he said quietly keeping his voice purposefully low fearing that if he didn’t he would shout, _scream even_ , filled with such rage that Alfred had felt he had to wear such a thing and that their love had to be secret so he could not even mourn in public. The black material seemed almost an obscenity against Alfred’s pale skin; he pulled at it, ripping it away & throwing it on the floor before Alfred’s shaking hands could even start undoing the knots.

He looked up, meeting Alfred’s eyes in the mirror and put his arm round his waist pulling him back against him. He began to gently kiss his neck watching in the mirror as Alfred’s eyes fluttered shut against the pleasure sensation

“no” murmured Edward “keep them open, see me my love, see _us”_

Alfred opened his eyes, the sight of Edward slowly nuzzling and licking against his neck and then along his shoulder almost too much to bear. He clasped his hand over Edward’s at his waist, squeezing it tightly as Edward moved his gentle kisses to his back trailing down his spine and then back up to whisper in his ear.

“to bed?”

Alfred nodded and Edward put his arms about him. Tomorrow he would tell him that despite his protestations in Ciros he had already written to Florence to call off their engagement. If there was one thing being a dead man, if only for a few hours, had taught him, it was that time was short and life is precious. He would not waste one more second of it on people he didn’t love.


End file.
